The present technology relates to implantable pliable bone blocks and methods of making implantable pliable bone blocks to treat bone defects and promote enhanced healing.
Osteogenesis and repairing of bone defects is a complex biological process requiring the concerted actions of bone forming cells such as osteoblasts and bone resorptive cells such as osteoclasts. The repair or reconstruction of bone defects may be aided by implants that initiate or enhance the formation of bone tissue. Such implants may be osteoconductive, osteoinductive, or both. In the case of a fracture or bone disease or defect, proper bone healing and subsequent bone remodeling is highly dependent on maintaining compatibility between osteoconductive materials that form the framework of the bone replacement and the osteoinductive materials which initiate replacement of the natural bone. Current bone graft materials include autografts (bone material obtained from the patient), allografts (the use of cadaver bone and bone material from human donors), xenografts (bone materials from non-human animals), and a variety of artificial or synthetic bone substitute materials.
An implantable bone block may be used to correct defects caused by trauma, pathological disease, surgical intervention or other situations where defects need to be managed in osseous surgery. Because defects are frequently jagged or irregularly shaped, it may be important for the block to be flexible and capable of numerous configurations for placement of the block into the site.